Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures is a Comcast company and celebrating 100th Anniversary from 1912-2012 since 1912. October 8, 2005 Universal Pictures Logo descriptions by''' Jason Jones, Matt Williams, Eric S. and Logophile'' Logo captures by Eric S., Bob Fish, Mr.Logo, codyfinke, Shadeed A. Kelly, Logozextreame102, Logophile, V of Doom, and Donny Pearson '''''Editions by' Eric S., Shadeed A. Kelly, V of Doom, Donny Pearson, Nathan B., Mr.Logo, shnick1985, AlekaJ1003 and others'' ''Video captures courtesy of KidCairbre, kmhoran1, iseven016, MattTheSaiyan, JohnnyL80, IdentsandLogos, terodius, phasicblu, ILoveLogos75, movieclipsTRAILERS, and Universal Pictures'' '''Background: Universal Pictures was originally formed on June 8, 1912 by Carl Laemmle, a German-Jewish immigrant who settled in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where he managed a clothing store. It is the second oldest studio in Hollywood (beaten by one month by Paramount Pictures). However, it was fully established in 1915. In 1946, Universal merged with International Pictures, headed by Leo Spitz and William Goetz. This team ran Universal-International, while Nate Blumberg and J. Cheever Cowdin remained at the helm of Universal Pictures, the parent company. In late 1951, Universal-International was acquired by Decca Records. In 1962, Music Corporation of America (MCA) purchased Decca Records and with it, Universal-International Pictures, leaving Milton Rackmil and Edward Muhl in charge, while Dr. Jules Stein (Board Chairman) and Lew Wasserman (President) guiding MCA. As a result of a consent decree with the justice department, MCA divested itself of its talent agency business. In 1990, MCA/Universal was acquired by Panasonic Corporation and later sold to Seagram and Sons in 1995. In 1996, MCA was reincorporated and renamed as Universal Studios. In December 2000, French company Vivendi acquired Universal Studios from Seagram and Sons and formed Vivendi Universal Entertainment. On May 11, 2004, it was part-owned by Vivendi SA (20%) and General Electric (80%) and became a subsidiary of NBC Universal, Inc. On January 26, 2011, Vivendi S.A. sold the remaining 20% of NBC Universal to GE until January 28, when Comcast Corporation acquired 51% of NBC Universal, Inc. with GE owning 49%, becoming a subsidiary of the newly-reincorporated "NBCUniversal, LLC". 1st Logo (July 22, 1914-1919) Nicknames: "Trans-Atlantic Globe", "Saturn Globe", "Trans-Atlantic Saturn Globe" Logo: We see a circle with "UNIVERSAL" written above and "FILMS" written below. Inside the circle is some really small text that says "TRADE MARK". A Saturn-like ring surrounds the circle, which reads "THE TRANS-ATLANTIC 'FILM CO. LTD.'" (Universal's British distributor at the time). FX/SFX: None. Music/Sounds: None. Availability: Ultra rare. Universal destroyed most of their silent films, so you'll have to look hard for this one. It last appeared on a silent film aired on TCM's Silent Sunday Nights.' '''Scare Factor': None, unless you're crept out by silent films. 2nd Logo (August 23, 1920-January 11, 1922) Nicknames: "Saturn Globe II" Logo: We see a checkered background with a Saturn-like globe with the words "UNIVERSAL FILMS" on it. "UNIVERSAL" is shown above the globe in a stencil-like font. "FILM MANUFACTURING COMPANY", "PACIFIC COAST STUDIOS", and "Universal City, Cal." are shown below, in different fonts (and the first line in an upward arc). FX/SFX: None. Cheesy Factor: It's a very old logo. Music/Sounds: None. Availability: Rare. It appears on silent films that air on TCM. You may look for this logo on TCM's Silent Sunday Nights. Scare Factor: None. 3rd Logo (September 2, 1923-September 6, 1925) Nicknames: "Rotating Letters", "Saturn Globe III", "Airplane Passing Globe" Logo: We see a biplane flying around a rotating globe counterclockwise, leaving a trail of smoke behind it, which form the words "UNIVERSAL PICTURES". Variant: A more zoomed-out version was used sometimes. FX/SFX: The plane rotating around the globe, the forming of the name. Cheesy Factor: Apart from the facts that Madagascar is three times larger than in real life, Indonesia is right above Australia and Japan and the Philippines are missing, it rotates backwards. Very cheesy by today's standards, but good for its time. Music/Sounds: None. Availability: Ultra rare. It currently appears on some 1920s Universal films on TCM's Silent Sunday Nights. Scare Factor: Low. It may surprise you the first time you see it. 4th Logo (September 9, 1927-September 17, 1936) Nickname: "Airplane Passing Globe II", "Biplane" Logo: On a cloud-like background, an earth globe rotates. No clouds are visible on the globe. As the globe rotates, a biplane flies around it, with "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" being wiped in diagonally as the biplane passes the globe. Closing Variant: The words "THE END" are seen superimposed in the globe. Then, seconds later, "IT'S A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" fades-in. Sometimes it's written in cursive. FX/SFX: The biplane, wiping on of letters, and the globe. Cheesy Factor: This logo just SCREAMS 1920s, as everything is a cheesy model. Still, it looked nice for the time, and you have to give them the effort of trying. Music/Sounds: Just the sound of the biplane's engine. Availability: This is one of the rarest Universal logos. Can be seen on some early films still, though. The current DVD releases of Frankenstein and Dracula ''has plastered this with the B&W variation of the 1997 logo, while the later VHS releases of the films plaster this with the B&W variation of the 1963 logo. Early Betamax and VHS releases of the films do not use a logo at all, though this one can be seen at the start of the 1984 MCA Home Video release of ''Bride of Frankenstein.This logo can sometimes be seen after the current logo of Universal on certain movies. It appears on TCM's print and the new Criterion DVD release of My Man Godfrey, although several public domain prints of the film have the logo removed entirely. A warp speed variant can be seen at the beginning of Balto III: Wings of Change. However, this logo was re-created on Xanadu, used during the opening credits. This logo made a comeback on Cry-Baby, which was a 1990 film. This logo also made a surprise appearance on the 2010 film Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball. Scare Factor: None. 5th Logo (May 11, 1936-December 15, 1947) Nicknames: "The Art-Deco Globe", "Rotating Letters II" Logo: A stylized glass globe is seen, tilted at an angle. Around the globe, the words "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" rotate, in a stylized 1930s font. Stylized five-point stars (ala the stars on the Paramount logo) surround the globe. Variant: On color releases, the logo is tinted blue. Closing Variant: Superimposed in a special background or in the last seconds of a movie, we see the words "The End" with lettering that varies on the movie along with the text "A Universal Picture" or "A Universal Release". FX/SFX: The stars, globe, and rotating letters. Cheesy Factor: This has to be cheesier than the first one. The stars honestly look like they're hung from a mobile or something. And the glass globe and letters look weird. It did look okay for its time, though, and they did get better later on. Music/Sounds: Usually the beginning of the movie's opening theme. However, a proud, bombastic orchestral fanfare (composed by Jimmy McHugh) is sometimes used, and Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid uses a remix of the tune. It sounds suspiciously like the 20th Century Fox fanfare (or vice versa). Availability: Can be seen on Universal releases of the era. The last regular appearance of this logo was Woody The Giant Killer. Made surprise appearances on The Sting, The Hindenburg, The Brink's Job, Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, Leatherheads, Changeling, and the 2010 remake of the 1941 feature, The Wolfman. Scare Factor: None. 6th Logo (August 28, 1946-May 8, 1964) Nicknames: "Rotating ('40s) Globe", "50s Globe" Logo: On a space background, a model globe (harkening back to the 2nd logo; still no clouds though), rotates. Superimposed onto the globe are the words "Universal International" (in white for B&W films or yellow-orange for color films) in a italic Roman font with "U''" and "''I" bigger than the rest of the letters, symbolizing Universal's merger with International Pictures. Byline: Later on, the credit "EDWARD MUHL, IN CHARGE OF PRODUCTION" would appear in the lower-left corner. Closing Variant: Same as above, but the text is "A Universal-International Picture". FX/SFX: The rotating globe. Cheesy Factor: Well, they got sane with this one. Relatively minimal on the cheesy scale, though you can tell it's a model globe. Music/Sounds: The opening of the movie's theme. However, the Christmas bells are sometimes used. Notable instances include The Egg and I and The Naked City. Availability: Again, seen on Universal International releases of the period. Sometimes, the 10th logo would precede it on later releases of movies from the period (like the DVD release of To Kill a Mockingbird). Scare Factor: None. 7th Logo (June 26, 1963-May 18, 1990) Nicknames: "Zooming Globe", "Gaseous Globe", "Famous Globe", "MCA Globe", "Zooming MCA Globe", "Classic Globe" Logo: We zoom through space, and a pair of Van Allen radiation belts start to form. The rotating earth globe appears in the distance, and as we get closer to it, the word "UNIVERSAL", in a bold, planetary font (named Futura Bold), fades in close-up to us and zooms out to a comfortable distance. When the word and the globe are in position, "AN MCA COMPANY" fades in below it, in a bold yellow font (named Eurostile Bold). Two Van Allen belts surround the globe. Trivia: The logo was animated and designed by Universal Title and Optical (commonly known as "Universal Title"), who was also responsible for the animation for the Universal Television logos, and handles all of the titles and optical effects for all Universal films and television series until 1990. Variants: Several renditions of this logo have been discovered. This is going to get complicated, so let's explain this simply. There are many main variations of this logo: *'1963-1973': "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE/RELEASE", with the "UNIVERSAL" text sandwiched between "A" and "PICTURE" or "RELEASE". *"PRESENTS" is underneath the "UNIVERSAL" text. Sometimes, "UNIVERSAL PRESENTS" starts blurred, but becomes clearer as the globe zooms in fast. This variant is seen on movies like Secret Ceremony and The Killers (1964). *'1971-1990': The byline "AN MCA COMPANY", in a yellow Eurostile Bold font, appearing below the "UNIVERSAL" text. *''Widescreen'': Always shown in a letterboxed ratio, the globe appears to zoom in rather slowly, and the "UNIVERSAL" text is blurred when it fades in, becoming clearer as it zooms out. The logo is much wider than usual, to accommodate the extra space. This is seen on films shot in 2:35:1 widescreen such as Halloween II and III, The Thing, Scarface, The Dark Crystal, The Last Starfighter, and Jaws. It also had a bylineless variant of its own, seen on Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969), and Man's Favorite Sport (1964). *''TV Screen'': Always formatted to fit the television screen, the logo appears to move somewhat faster than the widescreen version. The "UNIVERSAL" text is not blurred, and simply fades in. The logo most people are familiar with. This is also seen on films shot in 1:85:1 widescreen such as Videodrome, Cat People ''(1982), ''Back to the Future films I & II, Brazil, and Somewhere in Time. In a variant, used in tandem with the normal version, "A Universal Picture" starts blurred but becomes clearer along with the Edward Muhl byline. The globe zooms in fast in this variant, used on movies like Shenandoah, Send Me No Flowers, Charade and Father Goose. It was surprisingly used on Inglourious Basterds, but without the Edward Muhl byline. *''Off-center'': Only known to exist on old video prints of Charade, ''the logo is slightly off-center. Due to a sloppy job reformatting the aspect ratio to the pan in scan format from it's 2:35:1 widescreen ratio. *A credit for Edward Muhl, then-head of Universal, can be seen on the lower-left of the first movies to feature this logo. *''E.T. the Extra-Terrestial had this logo in reverse, so we go from the world to outer space. *The 1971-1990 version is bylineless on some films. *The 1971-1990 version, but with "PRESENTS" underneath the byline in a smaller font. This was seen on American Graffti. *The widescreen version of Jaws 3-D has the MCA byline in a more extended font. *There is an end-title variation that contains the word "RELEASE" below the MCA byline. This was used to plaster the Paramount logo on 1980s reissue prints of Alfred Hitchcock films owned by Hitchcock himself (including'' Rear Window'' and 1956's The Man Who Knew Too Much). A black-and-white version was seen at the beginning of MCA Home Video's 1981 VHS release of Scarface ''(1932). '''FX/SFX': The rotating globe zooming-in, the Van Allen belts forming, and the "UNIVERSAL" text zooming-out. Cheesy Factor: This was very advanced for its time, and its longevity is amazing, especially during the '80s, when computerized logos were making their debut. So, this one is very low on the cheese scale. Music/Sounds: Usually it did not have music, but it did occasionally have the opening theme of the movie. Such memorable instances include Father Goose (composed by Nelson Riddle), The Ghost and Mr. Chicken, The Dark Crystal,'' and ''The Night Walker (both composed by Vic Mizzy). The opening tag from the latter film was also heard in abridged form on The World of Abbott and Costello. The 1972 feature length pilot of the TV series Emergency! used a dramatic, drum-driven fanfare based upon the series' theme. Availability: It's common as this was never plastered over, except the 20th Anniversary version of E.T plasters this with the E.T 20th Anniversary variant of the 1997 Universal logo, but is still seen on the original version of said film with the 1988 and 1996 VHS releases, the theatrical DVD release, and HBO and Cinemax airings. This was used for a total of 27 years, the longest-used logo since the classic era of movies. It premiered on (of all things) King Kong vs. Godzilla, released on June 26, 1963 (newer prints do not retain this as Sony now owns USA rights to said film), and made its last regular appearance on Bird on a Wire, released on May 18, 1990. The original 1960s version has made surprise appearances on the 2009 films Drag Me to Hell, Land of the Lost,'' and ''Inglourious Basterds. The "PRESENTS" variation of the logo is seen on Journey to the Far Side of the Sun, followed by the "a GERRY ANDERSON CENTURY 21 CINEMA PRODUCTION" logo. Strangely, on Airport, this logo is seen after the end credits with the opening P.A. track for the film playing over it (at least one VHS release had the logo and track at the start of the film); a similar occurrence appeared on The Thing ''(without any audio). The logo is also known to exist on the Don Bluth/George Lucas and Steven Spielberg productions ''An American Tail,'' The Land Before Time'', and the Paul Newman comedy Slap Shot. A sped-up or cut-short version was seen on a few movie trailers from 1985-1990 (including those for all 3 Back to the Future films, the last of which actually uses the 9th logo), but most went without it. NOTE: This was not seen on the following films originally (though most current releases place this logo on anyways): The Electric Horseman,'' 1941'','' The Blues Brothers'', Torn Curtain, Family Plot, and Frenzy. These all have the next logo below instead. The Emergency! version can be found only on the pilot episode, available as part of the season 1 DVD set. (The episode is not rerun as part of the series' syndication package.) Scare Factor: None to Low, The dark Earth, & eerie text may frighten some, but this is one of the most popular logos ever to exist in history. 8th Logo (In-credit Variant) (1963-1980s) Logo: Just a text credit saying "UNIVERSAL presents" or "A Universal Picture" that is in the same font as the opening credits. FX/SFX: None. Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the film or none. Availability: Seen at the start of Universal pictures throughout the 60s, 70s, and 80s, in place of the 7th logo, notably The Blues Brothers, The Thing,'' Airport'', and Alfred Hitchcock's thrillers: Torn Curtain,'' Family Plot'', and Frenzy. Some prints may place the 7th logo (following the 10th logo) in front of this text credit. Scare Factor: None. 9th Logo (May 25, 1990-April 18, 1997) Nicknames: "75th Anniversary", "Rotating Letters III", "MCA Globe II", "90s Globe", "90s MCA Globe", "75 Years of Universal" Logo: A large "flash" appears as we view the far right side of the Universal globe, still cloudless and against the new detailed starfield background. We move down the globe as the flash dims away and see, in golden letters, the word "UNIVERSAL", in a brand new font (named Copperplate Gothic Bold), appears from behind the globe and circling it. We zoom out and the globe moves to center, as the word "UNIVERSAL" straightens itself out and takes its place across the globe. "AN MCA COMPANY", in gold and in spaced-out letters to fit the width of "UNIVERSAL", appears below the logo. The byline is absent from 1996 to 1997. Trivia: This logo was produced by The Chandler Group and Studio Productions (now known as Flip Your Lid Animation), who also created the 1994-2010 20th Century Fox logo and the 1986-2003 Paramount Pictures logo. The animation of the globe and the letters were shot with motion control at The Chandler Group. The background was the painting that was done by Eric Von Schmidt. Early Variant: In 1990, Universal was celebrating its 75th Anniversary, and the initial version of this logo was different from the one used afterwards. It began with clips of logos 4, 5, and 7, and then segued into the then-current logo, as if it were a grand unveiling, or a passing of the torch. The end logo also had "75th ANNIVERSARY" on top of the logo, with "75" in the middle of "ANNIVERSARY", which is in spaced-out letters like the MCA byline, and written out in script with "th" flashing in next to "75". Movies that have this logo include Back to the Future Part III ''(first film to use this logo), ''Ghost Dad, Jetsons: The Movie, Problem Child, Mo' Better Blues, Darkman, Henry & June, Child's Play 2, Havana, Kindergarten Cop, Lionheart, King Ralph,'' The Hard Way'','' Career Opportunities'' and A Kiss Before Dying (the final film to use this variant of the logo). This was only used from May 25, 1990 to April 26, 1991. From May 24, 1991 to April 18, 1997, starting with the film Backdraft, the regular variant was used. FX/SFX: The rotating globe and letters (which, contrary to popular assumption, are not CGI, but models filmed with motion control). The 75th Anniversary variant was done by Studio Productions (now known as Flip Your Lid Animation). Music/Sounds: A majestic orchestral fanfare by James Horner. A French horn fanfare was played during the clips of the old logos during the 75th Anniversary logo; a sped-up version of this was later used as the 1991 UTV theme. Music/Sound Variant: On a VHS of Reach The Rock, the 1997 fanfare is heard, most likely due to sloppy editing. Availability: It's easy to see, as this was on all Universal releases of the era such as Jurassic Park and'' Waterworld'' ''among others. It premiered on ''Back to the Future Part III, released on May 25, 1990, and made its final appearance on McHale's Navy, released on April 18, 1997. The 75th Anniversary version can be seen on the aforementioned films above. This logo makes a surprise appearance on the 2011 remake of The Thing.' '''Scare Factor': None. This is a great logo. 10th Logo (May 23, 1997-February 24, 2012) Nicknames: "CGI Globe", "The Glittering Globe", "The Shimmering Globe", "The Transparent Globe", "2000s Globe", "Rotating Letters IV" Logo: On a black background, an arc slowly appears and brightens. The lights begin appearing below the arc and we see that this is another globe, looking over Europe. We move down as the lights appear all over Europe, and then Africa (which the Earth's continents now have the green, yellow, and red color design this time). As we begin to zoom out, the letters in the word "UNIVERSAL", in a similar font as the last logo but handsomely redone (this time, the text is still gold, but has the inner white part of the text rising out of the gold part), rotate to the front of the globe as the lights around the continents dim out. By this time, the globe is shining from the back. A small copyright appears at the bottom-right. Variants: A treasure trove. Here are a few variants: *There is a shorter version of this logo, beginning as the "UNIVERSAL" text slides in over the logo, with a shortened version of the fanfare. This is usually found at the end of documentaries produced for DVD by Universal Home Entertainment, with a web address for Universal's website. *From 1999 to October 26, 2001, December 21, 2001 to February 22, 2002, and from April 19, 2002 to 2010, the web address, "www.universalstudios.com", in an orangish color, fades in at the end. By now the copyright is gone, and moved to the end credits of the movie. *In 2005, the globe was graphically enhanced with a darker color and was rotating below the arc in the beginning of the logo. *Another variant has a darker mood. Nicknamed "The Transparent Globe," the presentation is the same as usual... except the initial darkness of the globe is darker than usual (pay close attention to that). Then, after the word "UNIVERSAL" is rotated from behind, a darker, thicker shadow suddenly pops out late after it locks in position, and the entire globe zooms out farther than its intended mark, and instead of slowing to a stop, it stops hard in its far-back position. The website URL is featured in a Xerox Serif Wide-type font, like a rectangular Helvetica. The globe appears much further back in letterbox format. You can find this variant on the following films: 8 Mile, American Wedding, Seabiscuit, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, and The Bourne Supremacy. *The biggest variation came on November 21, 2001, when the studio celebrated the 20th anniversary of the most successful film of 1982, E.T the Extra-Terrestrial. The logo animates as normal until the very end, when the "UNIVERSAL" text fades out and the silhouette of E.T. and Elliott, on their bike, fly across the shining globe. Text appears on the bottom, "UNIVERSAL STUDIOS CELEBRATES E.T. THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY" with "E.T." in it's own movie logo font. This was used on November 21, 2001 and March 22, 2002, as of The Scorpion King, the normal logo has been reinstated. *Starting in 2009, the website URL has been removed in favor of the byline "A DIVISION OF NBC UNIVERSAL", also in an orangish color, which fades in toward the end. *On some films, such as Nanny McPhee Returns ''(or ''Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang ''in places outside the US) the logo is bylineless. *Since 2004 this logo was used in licensed games (due to the closure of Universal Interactive brand). It it entirely a still logo on a black background, usually in better quality than the movie counterpart, or had the shining, but never the full animation. Several games with a still logo used the white background. Sometimes, it replaced the Universal Interactive logo from earlier games like ''The Grinch. FX/SFX: The lighting of the globe and the rotation of the letters. Music/Sounds: Begins with a powerful, majestic horn fanfare, followed by two orchestra hits. Then, another horn fanfare, followed by two more hits. Then, a very majestic fanfare as the logo is completed. Composed by Jerry Goldsmith, who was the composer for the Carolco logo theme. Music/Sounds Variants: *From November 21, 2001 to March 22, 2002, the music was changed in an arrangement by John Williams to go with the customized E.T. logo; there is only one horn fanfare/hits sequence, followed by the end fanfare. This then segues into the theme from E.T. as he and Elliott fly across the globe. *When the E.T. logo was dropped on March 22, 2002, the music did not change back to the 1997 version until May 17, 2002. Instead, it's a re-orchestration of the 1997 fanfare, again in an arrangement by John Williams. Same melody, but like the E.T. logo, it is in a different key and sounds more "powerful". *On some prints of Commandants and the DVD of Tremors II, the 1990 fanfare from the previous logo is heard, due to a plastering error. Syfy's airing has the correct '97 fanfare. Availability: Very common. This logo first appeared in The Lost World: Jurassic Park, and made its final theatrical appearance in Wanderlust. Recently, it was seen in Universal's latest made-for-home media movie: An American Girl: McKenna Shoots for the Stars. ''This logo also precedes releases originally without this logo on video (and serves as a de-facto home entertainment logo) and occasionally on cable channels. Also seen on new prints of ''The Blues Brothers, Tremors, ''and ''The Last Starfighter, with the latter plastering the 7th logo and Lorimar logos. Also appeared on licensed games, for example, can be seen on Tale of Despereaux (white background) and American Tail games (black background). Scare Factor: None. This logo isn't as popular or well-received with fans as the previous logo, but there's nothing scary about it. 11th Logo(March 2, 2012- ) Nicknames: "CGI Globe II", "100th Anniversary Globe", "Rotating Letters V", "Majestic Globe", "100 Years of Universal", "2010s Globe", "Comcast Globe", "Comcastic Globe" Logo: On a black starry background, as the sun shines on the planet, the camera pans backwards across Europe and Africa. Then "UNIVERSAL" in white with golden bordering rises upward as the sun pans down, and light glows on the continents. Then the screen eases back to its familiar position. The continents glow as the globe revolves showing the Americas. The sun shines, leaving a glow behind the Earth. Then the byline that reads "A COMCAST COMPANY" fades in underneath. The "UNIVERSAL" name shines before fading out. Trivia: The logo was designed by Weta Digital of New Zealand. Early Variant: Just like as they did with their 1990 logo when the company celebrated their 75th Anniversary, Universal initially used a special variant of this logo on the year they celebrated their centennial milestone. In a similar manner the 75th Anniversary variant of the 1990 logo was revealed, the logo acts out as another "grand unveiling" or "passing of the torch," as it begins with clips of the previous logos of the company's history, beginning with the 4th logo and finishing with the previous logo; in which the current logo makes it's majestic debut shortly afterwards. The 100th Anniversary variant of the logo also featured the words, "100th ANNIVERSARY" in gold, which are seen rotating in under "UNIVERSAL" at the same time. The logo w/ montage is only seen on the internet as a promotion video for their 100th year, as most films released so far only have just the logo. FX/SFX: The panning of the planet, the company name rising, the continents glowing. All brilliant CGI effects, and is reminiscent of the 1990 and 1997 logos. Music/Sounds: The previous logo's fanfare, originally composed by Jerry Goldsmith, in a powerful new re-orchestration by Brian Tyler, accompanied by "a choir, new string parts and drum cadence utilizing world percussion instruments," according to the Hollywood Reporter. On the 100th Anniversary logo variant, in the logo montage, "One Last Wish" from Casper ''is used as a fanfare.'' Music/Sounds Variants: On Disney Channel's new print of Big Fat Liar, the 1997 music is heard with this logo, due to sloppy plastering. Availability: Brand new. It was unveiled on January 10, 2012 and photos of the logo appeared in various sources. The fully-animated logo is currently available on Universal's YouTube page; and the logo made its theatrical debut with Dr. Seuss' The Lorax ''on March 2nd. Also seen on ''Battleship, The Bourne Legacy, Ted, and Snow White and the Huntsman, among others. This has plastered the 1997 logo on a recent airing of The Perfect Man on TBS and Big Fat Liar on Disney Channel with the '97 fanfare. Also, a still version is seen on movie-licensed video games, such as Battleship. The version without the "100TH ANNIVERSARY" wording is expected to be used on Universal's first film released in 2013, although it appears at the end of Universal's Cinematic Spectacular: 100 Years of Movie Memories at Universal Studios Florida and on trailers for movies being released in 2013. Scare Factor: None. A worthy successor to the 1997 logo. Universal Studios Home Entertainment ''Logo descriptions by James Stanley Barr, Kris Starring, and Matt Gauer'' ''Logo captures by V of Doom, EnormousRat, Dean Stewart Rumsey, Logoboy95, Mr.Logo, and wolfie14'' ''Editions by V of Doom, kidinbed, betamaxtheflyer, MariluHennerArtist45, Lizz Tetlow and Nathan B.'' Video captures courtesy of '''Tlogos, LogoLibraryinc, titigag89, fredbur50, Watcher3223', and EnormousRat '''Background: Universal Studios' home entertainment unit descended from MCA's "DiscoVision" system, which was created to develop the laser video disc system and entered the market in 1978 after development that started in the late 1960's, and the first demonstration of the system in 1972. Discovision was riddled with issues, and numerous films were released from Universal, with Disney, Warner Bros., and Paramount also licensing titles to the label. With DiscoVision failing, MCA entered the home videocassette market in late 1980, creating "MCA Videocassette" to market releases to VHS and Betamax. DiscoVision was finally folded as a software label by MCA in 1981 reorganizing the division as "MCA Videodisc", and also expanded their videodisc operations to cover RCA's "SelectaVision" videodisc format. However, the "MCA Home Video" moniker was applied to both VHS and disc releases and became simply known as "MCA Home Video", alternating with the "MCA Videocassette" name until 1984. In 1990, MCA Home Video renamed itself as "MCA/Universal Home Video" to capitalize the Universal Studios name and to coincidence with Universal's 75th Anniversary, alternating with the "MCA Home Video" name in 1992 or 1995. Later in 1996, it renamed itself as "Universal Studios Home Video" and years later what is known today as "Universal Studios Home Entertainment", alternating with the "MCA/Universal Home Video" name until 1998. MCA DiscoVision 1st Logo (1977) Nickname: "Glowing V-LaserDisc" Logo: We start out with glowing blue light in the center of the screen. The glowing light shrinks until it is the size of a small circle embedded in a yellow upside down triangle split vertically in the center. The words "MCA DISCO-VISION" appear on top of the triangle, and the copyright symbol appears on the bottom right area. FX/SFX/Cheesy Factor: The shrinking of the light in the center of the screen. Music/Sounds: A drum beat followed by a violin stinger. Before the violin stinger is an 8-note guitar tune played twice (during the drumbeats). Availability: Only used in a 1977 test pressing that was used as a public display by MCA. Scare Factor: Low to medium. The somewhat creepy music and the glowing may scare some. 2nd Logo (1978-1981) Nickname: "Big V" Logo: The words "DISCOVISION" crawl across the entire screen in a rainbow of colors like a kaleidoscope, and rows of vertical orange lines appear on the screen. The center lines open up in a rainbow of colors to reveal a white "V", with "DISCO" and "ISION" appearing on the left and right sides of the "V", respectively, appearing on a blackish background with a large Bondi blue streak in the middle. The DiscoVision logo sparkles for a second and then an abrupt cut to black. Variants: *On 1979-1981 releases, a copyright stamp appeared underneath the DiscoVision logo. **Black and white DiscoVision movies featured this logo in black and white. FX/SFX: The crawling of the "DISCOVISION" letters, the appearance of the logo, the splitting of the logo, the sparkling of the logo. Cheesy Factor: Scanimate animation. DiscoVision was MCA's baby (at the time). Music/Sounds: A flute tune accompanied by a lavishly orchestrated theme. On some releases, such as Bustin' Loose, it's silent. Availability: Seen on every DiscoVision release from 1978 to 1981. Scare Factor: Low. It's a good logo to be exact. _______________________________________________________________ MCA Videodisc (1981-1983) Nickname: "Flashing MCA Rainbow (of Doom)" Logo: On a black screen, the words "A PRESENTATION OF" zoom-out in the 1980 MCA font in yellow before dissolving in the center. Following that are streaks of rainbow color that zoom out to the middle of the screen and flash to form... MCA VIDEODISC ...all in the MCA logo font. More rainbow streaks of light shoot out of the words and then settle back in. FX/SFX/Cheesy Factor: 80s computer effects. Music/Sounds: A synth drone that culminates in a dreamy siren-like sound, ending with some synth bass notes to fade. Availability: Extremely rare. It's seen on all MCA Videodisc releases from 1981 to 1983. Scare Factor: Medium to high. The dark nature of the logo, abruptness, and slightly creepy synth music make this a scary logo. The scare factor is much lower for those who are used to seeing it. _______________________________________________________________ MCA Videocassette Inc. (1980-October 1983) Nickname: "The Arc" Logo: On a black background, the MCA logo appears in the center of the screen colored in blue. The words "VIDEOCASSETTE INC.", in a white segmented pattern, which seem to be spaced farther apart when they reach the bottom, surround the MCA logo, looking like the CBS/FOX logo. Variant: Black & white movies featured this logo in black & white. FX/SFX: The appearance of "VIDEOCASSETTE INC." Cheesy Factor: The logo looked cheap. MCA was heavily invested in laserdisc at the time. Music/Sounds: None. Availability: Extremely rare. Seen on every release from 1980 to 1983. It makes a surprise appearance on the Desert Island Films Bootleg DVD-R release of Cherry Hill High. Scare Factor: Low. The appearance of the logo may scare some. _______________________________________________________________ MCA Home Video 1st Logo (November 1983-April 1990) Nicknames: "The Gold MCA", "The Zooming MCA", "MCA in Space", "Earth Yellow MCA", "VHS Assembly", "The MCA VHS Assembly" Logo: On a CGI starry background, we see the MCA Home Video logo (in Earth yellow color). This logo has the usual MCA logo (with the "C" and "A" connected) and the word "HOME VIDEO" (in a sleek, smaller font that has the same width as MCA) in a box that resembles a videotape (but MCA overlaps this box on the top, making it "cut open"). The logo zooms in slowly, like the Universal globe at the time. The logo fades out to the starry background for a second, and then an entire fade to black. Variants: ***Most current laserdisc players will skip over most of the animation on most DiscoVision titles due to DiscoVision's decision to encode the start frame halfway through the bumper on most titles. Some titles will play the full opening, such as the 1978 standard play version of The Sting. ***Some later releases featured an announcement asking the viewer to stay tuned for previews of future releases that faded out shortly before the logo's appearance. ****MCA releases co-released by Goodtimes Home Video have "UNDER LICENSE TO" at the bottom of the screen. The Goodtimes logo of the period would follow. *****On some French-Canadian tapes such as A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child,'' a French FBI Warning will appear before the logo. ******On the 1985 laserdisc of 60's ''Spartacus, the logo fades out earlier. *******On some early 80's VHS tapes featuring this logo, the logo fades in at the bottom, along with "Other Titles Available From" or "More Programming Available to You From" at the top, then the screen fades out afterwards. ********Black and white movies would have this logo in black & white, such as The Wolf Man and Destry Rides Again. *********Some releases, such as the 1983 VHS of Jaws 3 and the 1980s VHS of Rear Window, often had this logo segueing into the 1963 Universal logo. FX/SFX: The stars, the zooming-in of the logo. Music/Sounds: None. Availability: Partly common. Check your thrift stores for tapes featuring this logo on the cover. It was seen on tapes such as the 1988 video release of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial ''and the 1989 release of ''The Land Before Time. Others include the mid-late 80's releases of'' Back to the Future'', An American Tail, *batteries not included, and Parenthood. Scare Factor: Low. It's a good logo to be exact. 2nd Logo (1986-1990) Nicknames: "Zooming/Sliding MCA", "VHS Assembly II", "The MCA VHS Assembly II" Logo: The MCA Home Video logo appears in chrome (usually zooming in or sliding into the view). There are different variants: **********Side opening bumpers on some MCA Home Video laserdiscs between 1984 and 1986 used the stars by themselves, with "Side 2", "Side 3", etc., appearing by itself in the center of the screen, and then a fade out back to the stars. The 1984 laserdisc release of Rear Window features this bumper. **********On the VHS trailer for An American Tail (1986), the logo was in gold on a black background. The gold variant is nicknamed "The Gold MCA". The gold variant is also compared to the main logo. ***********On the VHS trailer for Talk Radio (1988), the logo is seen in silver/chrome on an oatmeal gray background. It flashes red (to accompany the sound of the drumbeats used in the background music). This variant is nicknamed "The Silver MCA". ************On the VHS trailer for The Land Before Time (1988), the logo was in bright red and on a black background. This variant is nicknamed "The Red MCA". *************On the VHS trailer for Uncle Buck (1989), the "MCA HOME VIDEO" logo is in sky blue and slides in from the left on a black background. This variant is nicknamed "The Blue MCA". This also appears on the VHS trailer for Phantasm II ''(1988). '''FX/SFX/Cheesy Factor': Typical late-80's computer effects/animation. Music/Sounds: The music or theme from whatever movie is being advertised. Availability: Extremely rare. Seen primarily on trailers for MCA Home Video releases at the time. Scare Factor: Low. The zooming and sliding effects can be jarring (depending on the variant), but it's harmless overall. _______________________________________________________________ MCA/Universal Home Video 1st Logo (May 1990-1998) Nicknames: "The Clean Globe", "Shiny Globe", "MCA Globe", "Shiny MCA Globe", "90s Globe", "90s MCA Globe" Logo: On a black background, we see the following text all centered: MC/\ UNIVERSAL H O M E-------------------V I D E O with "MCA" in it's similar corporate font from before and has a white gradient texture on it and "UNIVERSAL" in it's similar font as the movie logo from 1990-1997, but has a gradient texture on it. The text shines and soon afterwards, a globe (showing only the Americas) fades in the center. Then a starfield background fades in behind everything else, then the text shines again. Variants: **************Another variant from 1988 has a silver MCA logo and a blue-black gradient background. This appears on the VHS trailer for Shakedown ''(1988). **************On some Goodtimes Home Video releases (i.e. ''Car Wash), the MCA/Universal logo plays normally. The background, however, has moving stars in the background (as opposed to the regular version where the background stays static). At the end, the words "UNDER LICENSE TO" pops up, peeking above the globe as the logo fades out. The Goodtimes Home Video logo would follow. ***************Some MCA/Universal releases have a Goodtimes byline at the bottom. FX/SFX: The slow appearances of the globe and the starfield background and the sparkling of the logo. Music/Sounds: None. However, on The Making of E.T., ''the opening theme plays over the logo. '''Availability': Common, this can be seen on almost all of the releases made by MCA/Universal like Jurassic Park,'' the Back to the Future'' sequels, the'' Land Before Time'' sequels,'' and ''We're Back: A Dinosaurs Story. The last releases to use this were Liar Liar, The Land Before Time V: The Mysterious Island, Hercules & Xena: The Animated Movie, The Chipmunk Adventure,'' The Spookatacular New Adventures of Casper: Spooky and Poil Meet the Monsters/Dead of the Class and A Christmas Peril/Three Ghosts and a Baby'', and Leave it to Beaver (the 1997 film). This also makes a surprise appearance on the Canadian Cineplex Odeon VHS of Beyond the Law (1993). Scare Factor: None, this is a very clean and beautiful logo. 2nd Logo (1994-1998) Nicknames: "Airplane Passing Globe" (not the early Universal logo), "The Filmstrips", "Raining Filmstrips", "Rotating Globe", "90s Globe II", "MCA Globe II", "Morphing MCA Globe", "90s MCA Globe II" Logo: On a space background, we see the rotating globe in the 1930's style rotating. Coming from behind is an airplane passing over the globe, as usual, posed against on screen and flies through the screen. Suddenly, rainbow filmstrips are seen falling over the logo before the nebula sky fades in. Over the globe while it changes into it's 1990s style and in color, we see these words coming from the left and right sides of the screen (respectively) in their same corporate fonts: MC/\ UNIVERSAL A few seconds later as "MCA" and "UNIVERSAL" go into their positions in front of the globe, a red orange/yellow gradient fire flies through the screen, forming the words "HOME VIDEO" underneath, with a line above it and the globe stops rotating afterwards. When the logo forms, either the "®" symbol or the "TM" symbol fades in on the bottom right of the screen. Variants: There are two variations of this logo: ****************On The Making of E.T., the logo is sped-up. ****************There is a short version in which the airplane and filmstrips parts of the logo are cut out and begins with the words zooming and rotating in. FX/SFX: The airplane passing globe, the transition from black and white to color, the letters rotating in, and the fire flying through the screen. Music/Sounds: Usually the theme from whatever movie is being advertised, but the sound effects of the airplane are heard. Sometimes a shortened version of the Universal theme (from that era) could be heard. The trailer for the'' Back to the Future'' trilogy has the Back to the Future theme. On promotional VHS releases, a voice over advertising upcoming releases is used. Availability: Uncommon. It was seen primarily on home video trailers and promotional VHS tapes at the time. The still version appeared on the first three The Adventures of Timmy the Tooth videos. Also seen on the trailer for The Shadow. Scare Factor: None to low. _______________________________________________________________ Universal Studios Home Entertainment 1st Logo (1997-2012) Nickname: "CGI Globe" Logo: Only the 1997 Universal Pictures logo with no video indicator whatsoever. What's different about this version from the theatrical version is that this logo zooms back a little. FX/SFX/Cheesy Factor: The same as the Universal logo from 1997. Music/Sounds: The same as the Universal logo from 1997. Availability: Common. This is used as the de-facto home video logo. Appears on Focus Features releases, direct-to-DVDs, DVD versions of older, pre-1997 Universal movies, and made-for-TV family movies such as Balto III: Wings of Changes, Pokémon: Giratina and the Sky Warrior, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein, Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Th''e Wolfman, ''The Land Before Time sequels starting with The Land Before Time V: The Mysterious Island, and the 1971-1982 Dr. Seuss/DFE animated specials, among others. Recently, this logo--with the NBC Universal byline was seen in Universal's latest made-for-home media movie: An American Girl: McKenna Shoots for the Stars. Scare Factor: The same as the Universal logo from 1997. 2nd Logo (2012- ) Nickname: "CGI Globe II" Logo: Same as the 2012 Universal Pictures logo, with no video indicator whatsoever. Variant: As with the theatrical counterpart, the words "100TH ANNIVERSARY" are shown below the "UNIVERSAL" text during this logo's first year of use (2012) to commemorate the studio's centennial. FX/SFX: Same as the 2012 Universal Pictures logo. Music/Sounds: Same as the 2012 Universal Pictures logo. Availability: Brand new. Has been sighted on the DVD and Blu-ray release of Dr. Seuss' The Lorax ''and should be seen on future DVDs and Blu-ray releases. '''Scare Factor': Same as the 2012 Universal Pictures logo. _______________________________________________________________ Universal Studios HD DVD and Blu-ray (2006-2012) Logo: Here are the variants used on HD-DVD and Blu-ray: *****************There is a still version of the logo without music. *****************'HD-DVD': An updated edition of the 1997 logo. The logo plays normally, but at the end, the logo zooms back to reveal it is being reflected in a giant "HD-DVD" logo in the same space background. The logo shines. Trivia: This logo was used on Universal HD-DVD releases from 2006-2008 and Universal Blu-ray releases since July 22, 2008. FX/SFX: Same as the above logo, except the end on the HD-DVD version. Music/Sounds: See above. Availability: On every Universal HD-DVD and Universal Blu-ray release. Scare Factor: None, unless the sudden logo transition gets to you. *'Blu-ray': Same as above, except the "HD-DVD" logo is omitted. Trivia In 2014 Universal Pictures Home Entertainment got the role of releasing Hit Entertainments productions along with Thomas And Friends which also featured a little blue train on DVD. Category:Movie Companies Category:Companies